Comments on: Senate Bid Abandoned, at Obama’s Requesthttp://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/
Blogging From the Five BoroughsThu, 06 Oct 2011 16:51:56 +0000hourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=4.0.1http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/section/NytSectionHeader.gifNYThttp://www.nytimes.com
By: jesshttp://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/comment-page-1/#comment-451989
Sun, 24 May 2009 16:44:15 +0000http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/#comment-451989Obama the fascist strikes again. NY’ers, I hope you don’t put up with this. I’m voting for whoever is left on the ballot, but not GK. This type of meddling from Obama is unacceptable. But some of us with our eyes wide open already saw him for who he is. Getting people off the ballot is nothing new to him, but to do it as president of the united states is almost unreal to watch.
]]>By: Nassau Nellhttp://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/comment-page-1/#comment-448393
Tue, 19 May 2009 13:55:28 +0000http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/#comment-448393Appointed Senator Gillibrand is the diversity on the State Democratic ticket in 2010: she is a woman and not from Downstate.

All the other statewide candidates will be from New York City or Long Island.

She and Comptroller DiNapoli are the weak links and will get either Democratic primarys or the strongest Republican challengers.

]]>By: johnnyhttp://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/comment-page-1/#comment-447885
Mon, 18 May 2009 17:57:40 +0000http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/#comment-447885i’d rather have a choice between the lesser of two evils at each stage of the political process, rather than no choice.
]]>By: Dave H.http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/comment-page-1/#comment-447679
Mon, 18 May 2009 17:03:20 +0000http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/#comment-447679All of these potential candidates including our current appointed senator are name recognition challenged. A primary would be healthy. Lets see where they stand on the issues and what differences there may be between them. Let the Democratic voters of N.Y. decide this. The winner should be able to beat ANY republican nominee.
]]>By: Anne R.http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/comment-page-1/#comment-447487
Mon, 18 May 2009 13:01:04 +0000http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/#comment-447487I posted this before, maybe with luck I’ll make it on the second attempt because I didn’t say anything nasty.

Steve Isreal is being gracious. The reason that President Obama and other high level elected Democrats don’t want a primary challenge for Kirsten Gillibrand is that the NY primary is held in September – 8 weeks before the election.

This means the primary challengers are slugging things out – spending more time fighting each other than an opponent from the other party.

The late primary is part of New York’s incumbent protection program, since the incumbent can raise campaign cash, and tour the state reminding voters what the incumbent has done while his/her opponent doesn’t emerge until it’s almost too late to raise a strong challenge.

We can debate the merits of Senator Gillibrand, but she does represent upstate NY at a time when all other high ranking Democrats come from downstate. Given the economic devastation in upstate NY and the prospect of stimulus money for infrasture, it IS important to have a senator who has an intimate knowledge of the upstate region.

Say what you will, this is one NY-20 voter who is happy to have our representative raised to Senator. I will be working hard in 2010 to help raise votes for OUR senator, Kirsten Gillibrand.

]]>By: Serendipitoushttp://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/comment-page-1/#comment-447481
Mon, 18 May 2009 12:49:14 +0000http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/#comment-447481Well, at least there is some hope that Gillibrand can bring some common sense to Immigration reform.
]]>By: SteveRhttp://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/comment-page-1/#comment-447479
Mon, 18 May 2009 12:47:53 +0000http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/#comment-447479Bizarre, that’s all I can say. Machine politics and back door deals continue, even under the Obama Regime. It just confirms what I believed all along– that poster with Obama’s picture and the word “Change” — should be re-written “Same”.
]]>By: Arshad Sherif, M.A., M.Ed.http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/comment-page-1/#comment-447457
Mon, 18 May 2009 05:36:03 +0000http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/#comment-447457It is a little unusual for a president to ask a potentially strong candidate for the Senate not to run. And this president especially has shown no interest in New York senatorial politics: just ask Caroline Kennedy. Will she ever forgive him?

I wish Caroline Kennedy would finally open up, and tell us the truth about how she really feels.

]]>By: Javier from Brooklynhttp://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/comment-page-1/#comment-447407
Sun, 17 May 2009 17:44:18 +0000http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/#comment-447407I voted for Obama so I say this from the heart:

Stay the hell out of my state’s business. You have enough on your plate; I thought you were for change.

If you are, let the voters decide.

]]>By: Matthyew Jayson Fritchhttp://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/comment-page-1/#comment-447399
Sun, 17 May 2009 17:18:36 +0000http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/#comment-447399Leave the political to New York as many has stated here. Seems that there is a lot of personal power gain is going on with current politicians
]]>By: Larry Eisenberghttp://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/comment-page-1/#comment-447393
Sun, 17 May 2009 17:04:33 +0000http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/#comment-447393If Obama slips more to the Right,
Backs Gillie, who is George-Bush-lite,
His true loyal backers
May morph to attackers,
With Gillie his close acolyte.
]]>By: WigWaghttp://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/comment-page-1/#comment-447381
Sun, 17 May 2009 16:23:22 +0000http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/#comment-447381Democrats better hope that someone takes Gillibrand on in a Democratic Senatorial Primary. She’s a light weight who can barely put two words together at a microphone without sounding ridiculous. She also comes from a politicaly dynasty like Caroline Kennedy and Andrew Cuomo do. Gillibrand’s father was a well known Republican lobbyist in Albany who was close to Al Damato.

Republican Pete King (from Long Island) will almost certainly be the Republican nominee. He will clean her clock in the debates.

Democrats will be far better off with Carolyn Maloney, Carolyn McCarthy, Andrew Cuomo or even Gary Ackerman. Steve Israeli would have been a far stronger candidate.

If Democrats insist on running Gillibrand without testing her first in a Primary, they can kiss this seat goodbye.

]]>By: Arshad Sherif, M.A., M.Ed.http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/comment-page-1/#comment-447379
Sun, 17 May 2009 16:16:26 +0000http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/#comment-447379Representative Steve Israel is a very gracious man, and he is to be congratulated for putting the interests of his party before his own ambition. He can place his trust in the beautiful hands of Kirsten Gillibrand, secure in the knowledge that she will never let him down.
]]>By: Lyle Voshttp://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/comment-page-1/#comment-447365
Sun, 17 May 2009 12:18:28 +0000http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/#comment-447365Israel should run against Schumer. Schumer devastated upstate New York while taking fortunes from Wall Street. What is interesting now is that the TARP program is being used by Democrats like Schumer as a sword of Damocles over Wall Street to ensure they make contributions to the democrats. The pension scandal goes so deep and is the basis for the Democratic party. It is worse than the Abramoff scandal. Where is the investigative reporting on this?
]]>By: Lead Doghttp://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/comment-page-1/#comment-447335
Sun, 17 May 2009 04:17:17 +0000http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/senate-bid-abandoned-at-obamas-request/#comment-447335Steve Israel should have told the President what then-Senator Obama said to all of those insiders and political elites who told him in 2007 that a primary was divisive, expensive, and could cost the party its ultimate goal.

Or, Israel could have reminded the President of how the DSCC preferred a different Democrat in Illinois back in 2004.